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Walmart vs. Target Essay

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WALMART AND TARGET:
A COMMUNICATION COMPARISON

Prepared for
Professor Devon Bazata
Business and Professional Writing

Prepared by
Kathryn Haines

Fall 1, 2012
WALMART AND TARGET:
A COMMUNICATION COMPARISON

INTRODUCTION

Many discount retailers have come and gone over the years, but Wal-Mart and more recently Target, have employed business models that continually deliver profits, even in the struggling economy of the United states in recent years. Wal-Mart and Target both have expanded rapidly since their inception and while Wal-Mart has become an international retailer with stores in fifteen countries and all over the United States while Target has …show more content…

Because of the success of Target stores, the company was renamed Target Corporation in August 2000. Target Corporation has three main divisions: Target Stores, Mervyn's, and Marshall Field's. Target Stores, the second largest discount retailer, offers products geared to attract a more affluent discount shopper. The Target customer is much younger than other discount BIG BOX stores with an average age of just 40, mostly female, have children and are college graduates. The distinction in customer base is important due to the emphasis on quality at lower prices. Target separates itself from its competitors by offering more up-to-date and stylish products, better quality, while still keeping prices lower. The attractiveness of the store presentations and the employee attentiveness also gives Target an edge against other BIG BOX discount retailers.

Target's sales revenues have consistently grown since 2008, in spite of economical challenges. Ending sales for 2011 topped $69 million, a $2 million increase over the previous year. Sales increases show that their marketing, advertising and communication styles are working to bring in new customers and to retain the customers they have.

Summary

Wal-Mart and Target are both discount BIG BOX retailers which have made the most of their strengths and have drawn upon the differences in their customer bases, product mix and business strategy. Even though both

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